Red Roses

Red Roses – the House of Lancaster.

Two royal houses - that of Lancaster and that of York - fought for the English crown in the Wars of the Roses. Both claimed the right to rule but who were they and what were their lines of descent? This quiz is about the dynasty represented by a red rose: the House of Lancaster.

1.

Henry V's victories in France led to him being named as the heir to the French monarch. Henry was never crowned as the king of France. Why was this?

The French king changed his mind and chose a different heir

Henry died before the French king

The French king was overthrown by his barons

Henry was defeated by French rebels

Henry V died on 31st August 1422 from what is thought to have been dysentery. The French king, Charles VI, died 52 days later. Henry's son was proclaimed King of both France and England, but the French throne was taken by Charles VII and the war continued

2.

Between 1440 and 1480 Henry became unpopular because of a slowing of England's economy. What is the name given to this period?

The Economic Crisis

The Great Slump

The Credit Crunch

The Great Depression

Poor harvests and disease in livestock drove up the price of food and this was exacerbated by a shortage of silver. The Great Slump, together with defeat in France and Henry VI's periods of madness, all helped to cause the Wars of the Roses

3.

Who is the current Duke of Lancaster?

Prince Edward

Prince Charles

Queen Elizabeth II

Prince Phillip

Since 1413, when Henry V ascended to the throne, the title Duke of Lancaster has been held by the monarch. Discounting kings, there have only ever been two Dukes of Lancaster, preceded by three Earls

4.

The House of Lancaster is descended from Edward III's 4th son, John of Gaunt. He became the Duke of Lancaster when he married who?

Blanche, Duchess of Lancaster

Beatrice, Duchess of Lancaster

Barbara, Duchess of Lancaster

Bethany, Duchess of Lancaster

Blanche was descended from Edmund Crouchback, the 2nd son of Henry III and the first Earl of Lancaster. She had inherited the title from her father, and upon her marriage to John of Gaunt he became the Duke

5.

The son of Henry IV, Henry V, enjoyed military success in the Hundred Years War against France. For how many years did the Hundred Years War last?

It lasted for 98 years

It lasted for 100 years

It lasted for 103 years

It lasted for 116 years

The war began in 1337 when Edward III invaded France claiming the throne as the heir of the French king Charles IV, who was Edward's uncle. It ended in 1453 with the English defeat at the Battle of Castillon. The Wars of the Roses began two years later

6.

The House of Lancaster ruled over England, on and off, from 1399 until 1471. How many Lancastrian kings were there during this period?

One Lancastrian king

Two Lancastrian kings

Three Lancastrian kings

Four Lancastrian kings

All were called Henry. Henry VI ruled twice, from 1422 until 1461, and again from 1470 until 1471

7.

The Lancastrian with the most right to the English throne at the time of the Battle of Bosworth was not Henry Tudor but John, the great-grandson of John of Gaunt's oldest child, Philippa. John was at that time the king of which country?

Portugal

Scotland

Spain

France

Philippa had married King John I of Portugal in 1387 and her descendant was now the king. Theoretically the king of Portugal could have contested Henry VII's claim to the English throne, though no challenge was ever made

8.

When the last Lancastrian king, Henry VI, came to the throne, he was how old?

He was 8 months old

He was 4 years old

He was 8 years old

He was 40 years old

He holds the record as the youngest ever monarch of England. Until 1435 the country was governed by a regent, Henry's uncle John, Duke of Bedford

9.

Henry VII claimed to be of the House of Lancaster as a descendant of John of Gaunt. Why was this claim dubious?

Because Henry was adopted into the family

Because Henry was not descended from John of Gaunt

Because Henry was related to John of Gaunt only through marriage

Because Henry's relation to John of Gaunt was illegitimate

Henry VII was the great-great-grandson of John of Gaunt and his lover, Katherine Swynford. The two did marry after John's first two wives had both died, but Henry's great-grandfather was born out of wedlock

10.

John of Gaunt's son imprisoned the ruling king Richard II and seized the throne as Henry IV. How is Henry said to have killed Richard?

Richard was poisoned

Richard was beheaded

Richard was starved

Richard was stabbed

Henry feared a revolt aimed at restoring Richard to the throne. To prevent this he had Richard killed, allegedly by starvation so as to leave no marks on the body and to clear Henry from charges of murder